Title: Advancing the Growth of the U.S. Wind Industry: Federal Incentives, Funding, and Partnership Opportunities

Abstract

The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) works to accelerate the development and deployment of wind power. The office provides information for researchers, developers,businesses, manufacturers, communities, and others seeking various types of federal assistance available for advancing wind projects.

The U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE's) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) works to accelerate the development and deployment of wind power. The office provides information for researchers, developers, businesses, manufacturers, communities, and others seeking various types of federal assistance available for advancing wind projects. This fact sheet outlines the primary federal incentives for developing and investing in wind power, resources for funding wind power, and opportunities to partner with DOE and other federal agencies on efforts to move the U.S. wind industry forward.

General Electric’s (GE) DOE Solar Energy Technologies TPP program encompassesd development in critical areas of the photovoltaic value chain that affected the LCOE for systems in the U.S. This was a complete view across the value chain, from materials to rooftops, to identify opportunities for cost reductions in order to realize the Department of Energy’s cost targets for 2010 and 2015. GE identified a number of strategic partners with proven leadership in their respective technology areas to accelerate along the path to commercialization. GE targeted both residential and commercial rooftop scale systems. To achieve these goals, General Electric and itsmore » partners investigated three photovoltaic pathways that included bifacial high-efficiency silicon cells and modules, low-cost multicrystalline silicon cells and modules and flexible thin film modules. In addition to these technologies, the balance of system for residential and commercial installations were also investigated. Innovative system installation strategies were pursed as an additional avenue for cost reduction.« less

In the wake of Hurricane Katrina and other severe storms in 2005, natural gas supplies were restricted, prices rose, and industry sought ways to reduce its natural gas use and costs. In October 2005, U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Energy Secretary Bodman launched his Easy Ways to Save Energy campaign with a promise to provide energy assessments to 200 of the largest U.S. manufacturing plants. A major thrust of the campaign was to ensure that the nation's natural gas supplies would be adequate for all Americans, especially during home heating seasons. In a presentation to the National Press Club onmore » October 3, 2005, Secretary Bodman said: 'America's businesses, factories, and manufacturing facilities use massive amounts of energy. To help them during this period of tightening supply and rising costs, our Department is sending teams of qualified efficiency experts to 200 of the nation's most energy-intensive factories. Our Energy Saving Teams will work with on-site managers on ways to conserve energy and use it more efficiently.' DOE's Industrial Technologies Program (ITP) responded to the Secretary's campaign with its Save Energy Now initiative, featuring a new and highly cost-effective form of energy assessments. The approach for these assessments drew heavily on the existing resources of ITP's Technology Delivery component. Over the years, ITP-Technology Delivery had worked with industry partners to assemble a suite of respected software decision tools, proven assessment protocols, training curricula, certified experts, and strong partnerships for deployment. Because of the program's earlier activities and the resources that had been developed, ITP was prepared to respond swiftly and effectively to the sudden need to promote improved industrial energy efficiency. Because of anticipated supply issues in the natural gas sector, the Save Energy Now initiative strategically focused on natural gas savings and targeted the nation's largest manufacturing plants--those that consume a total of 1 trillion British thermal units (Btu) or more annually. The approximately 6800 U.S. facilities that fall into this category collectively account for about 53% of all energy consumed by industry in the United States. The 2006 Save Energy Now energy assessments departed from earlier DOE plant assessments by concentrating solely on steam and process heating systems, which are estimated to account for approximately 74% of all natural gas use for manufacturing. The assessments also integrated a strong training component designed to teach industrial plant personnel how to use DOE's steam or process heating opportunity assessment software tools. This approach had the advantages of promoting strong buy-in of plant personnel for the assessment and its outcomes and preparing them better to independently replicate the assessment process at the company's other facilities. The Save Energy Now initiative also included provisions to help plants that applied for but did not qualify for assessments (based on the 1 trillion Btu criterion). Services offered to these plants included (1) an assessment by one of DOE's 26 university-based Industrial Assessment Centers (IACs), (2) a telephone consultation with a systems expert at the DOE's Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Information Center, or (3) other technical materials and services available through ITP (e.g., the Save Energy Now CD). By the end of 2006, DOE had completed all 200 of the promised assessments, identifying potential natural gas savings of more than 50 trillion Btu and energy cost savings of about $500 million. These savings, if fully implemented, could reduce CO2 emissions by 4.04 million metric tons annually. These results, along with the fact that a large percentage of U.S. energy is used by a relatively small number of very large plants, clearly suggest that assessments are an expedient and cost-effective way to significantly affect large amounts of energy use. Building on the success of the 2006 initiative, ITP has expanded the effort in 2007 with the goal of conducting 250 more assessments in large U.S. industrial plants. The 2007 assessments are addressing not only steam and process heating, but also pumping, compressed air, and fan systems. The full report reviews the tools and resources developed by the DOE ITP program before 2006, which are the foundation and catalyst for the Save Energy Now assessment efforts. The report describes the process by which industrial plants applied to obtain assessments in 2006 and the overall process and philosophy of conducting assessments. A comprehensive review of the results from the 2006 assessments is presented, along with a summary of key accomplishments and findings.« less

This study is concerned with energy use in the industrial sector where traditionally high energy prices in many nations have resulted in considerable attention being paid to energy conservative industrial practices. Energy-conservative technology has gone through an early evolution and the innovative technology that has evolved in these countries has been available for transfer to others. In this study, the term ''technology'' is used to mean the application of knowledge to achieve practical results. Technology transfer as it applies to the movement and application of knowledge across national boundaries, and more specifically from foreign nations to the U.S., is dealtmore » with. This represents a difference between this study and most others which deal with technology transfer, because the latter typically consider the case of transfer from highly developed nations to underdeveloped nations, where problems such as untrained labor forces exist. This study is primarily concerned with technology transfer among ''highly developed'' industrialized nations, and the problems and mechanisms are often different. The plastics, petroleum refining, steel and cement industries are used to provide examples of the potential for industrial energy conservation through the use of foreign technology, and to show the extent by which energy consumption has been reduced in specific cases. With these industry examples in mind, this study presents recommendations for actions which might be taken by the Federal government to encourage the transfer of energy-efficient technology from foreign industries to the U.S. context.« less